Northwest NEWS

May 20, 2002

King County seeks Brightwater comments

King County has scheduled two public meetings for our area in June to receive public comment on a proposed wastewater treatment system for south Snohomish County and north King County.
At the meetings, people can raise issues to evaluate during the environmental review process for the proposed system, called Brightwater. Staff from the county's Wastewater Treatment Division will also provide information and answer questions about the project.
The meetings will run from 5-8 p.m. on the following dates:
¥ Thursday, June 6
Hollywood School House
14810 N.E. 145th St., Woodinville
¥ Tuesday, June 18
University of Washington at Bothell, Building UW2, 18115 Campus Way N.E., Bothell.
The Wastewater Treatment Division is holding the meetings as part of the formal scoping process required by the State Environmental Policy Act.
Comments received during scoping will help the division decide what to analyze in the environmental impact statement, or EIS, on the project.
The draft EIS will be available for public review this fall. The final EIS is scheduled for publication in spring 2003.
"We welcome all points of view in this process, including those of people with questions, doubts and concerns," said Don Theiler, manager of the Wastewater Treatment Division, or WTD. "We need to hear from people throughout the region so we can make a well-informed decision on locating, designing, building and operating the treatment system."
The WTD is seeking public comment from all residents within and next to the Brightwater service area. The county wants to hear especially from residents and businesses near possible construction areas in Woodinville, Bothell, Kenmore, Lake Forest Park, Shoreline, Brier, Mountlake Terrace, Woodway, Edmonds and some unincorporated areas.
People can comment in several ways on the scope of the EIS. Besides holding the scoping meetings, the WTD in late May is mailing a scoping notice and information about the project to tens of thousands of residents and businesses near proposed treatment plant sites and along conveyance corridors. The scoping notice includes a postage-paid card to comment on the EIS.
People can also respond through the Internet at http://dnr.metrokc.gov/wtd/brightwater/env/.
All comments are due by June 27, 2002.
For more information or to request reasonable meeting accommodations for people with disabilities, call (206) 684-6799, (888) 707-8571 (toll free) or 711 (TTY). Information is also available on King County's Brightwater Web site at http://dnr.metrokc.gov/wtd/brightwater/env/ and in information packets at local libraries.